Tidal waves in the entertainment market place, such as the tanking of Netflix stock and the merger of Warner Bros. Discovery, have Warner bigwigs debating whether or not to release the upcoming Batgirl movie in theaters.
Roll out the red carpet?
The plan all along was for the Batgirl movie, starring Leslie Grace in the title role, to debut exclusively on HBO Max. Conventional boardroom thinking held this to be the smart move because: A. Batgirl is still (to some people) a relatively lightweight character who might struggle to attract the attention of theater goers, and B. Streaming is the wave of the future, baby!
US singer-songwriter Leslie Grace attends the opening night premiere of “In The Heights” during 2021 Tribeca Festival at United Palace Theater in New York, NY, June 09, 2021. (Photo by Anthony Behar/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images)
But…
Ever since last week when people started comparing Netflix to Blockbuster Video, maybe streaming isn’t the wave of the future, baby? Also, The Batman made a whole bunch of money, so maybe there’s an avenue for commercial success in a theatrical release.
All the people involved in the newly christened entertainment behemoth, Warner Bros. Discovery are under a lot of pressure to maximize returns on every piece of DC intellectual property, and that’s really what this insiders’ debate is all about; which path will lead to the biggest profits both now and with any potential sequels and spin-offs? It’s the kind of quandary my friends who went to business school loved to argue about before they went all twitchy.
Whatever the final call by the suits, I’m excited to see the Batgirl movie, whether at home or the cinema. What about you?
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